# Collant Leak//Bad Head Gasket

**URL:** <https://community.cartalk.com/t/collant-leak-bad-head-gasket/58921>\
**Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\
**Tags:** gaskets, coolant, civic, leaks, honda, radiators\
**Created:** [December 19, 2010, 8:59pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/collant-leak-bad-head-gasket/58921 "2010-12-19T20:59:48Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![penguinche](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f08c70/32.png) [@penguinche](https://community.cartalk.com/u/penguinche)\
**Post date:** [December 19, 2010, 8:59pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/collant-leak-bad-head-gasket/58921/1 "2010-12-19T20:59:48Z")

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So I posted this a few weeks back;  
  
 “I recently purchased a 1991 Honda Escort. The very next day I bought new radiator fluid and filled it up. Today (about 3 weeks later) I look down and my engine Temp is way up in the red. When I stop and check my coolant levels there is none to be found. I have never noticed a leak on the ground from my car, or a visual leak on the engine. At times there is light smoke that comes out of the tailpipe.  
  
 From everything I have read thus far it sounds like a bad head gasket, or at the very least an internal leak. Any ideas on how I can diagnose this myself cheaply?”  
  
  
  
 Responses I got were that it most likely was a blown head gasket. Since then however I have used a “block Tester” to see if any CO2 was coming through to the radiator, and the test came up negative.  
  
 When the car had first started to overheat and I found that there was no coolant left in the radiator, I put water in as a temporary fix to get home. Now (three days later and no driving) there is no water left in the radiator, and when I went to check my oil I found a copious amount of water mixed in with my oil.  
  
  
  
 So it seems to be that I am loosing coolant into my oil somehow. Can anyone suggest the next steps I could take in finding what I need to do to fix this leak at home? Also, is this as bad (possibly worse) than a blown head gasket?  
  
  
  
 Thanks in advance for the help!  
  
  
  
 ~Adam

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**Author:** ![jesmed1](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/jesmed1/32/2097_2.png) [@jesmed1](https://community.cartalk.com/u/jesmed1)\
**Post date:** [December 19, 2010, 9:19pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/collant-leak-bad-head-gasket/58921/2 "2010-12-19T21:19:43Z")

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Most likely a bad head gasket, though it could also be a cracked engine block.

Unfortunately, it sounds like the car already had this problem when you bought it. Did you have a mechanic check it out first?